


Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf

by BringerofDarkness



Category: Hellsing, RWBY
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-20
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2018-09-18 17:34:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9395894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BringerofDarkness/pseuds/BringerofDarkness
Summary: After being killed by Seras Victoria, Hans is transported to the RWBY universe as a child wolf faunus. Growing up in the Xiao Long household, he begins to grow protective over the two sisters, especially Ruby. What will he do when she leaves to join Beacon? Requested by blue-hart.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I DO NOT OWN RWBY OR HELLSING

Hans smiled as he felt his body burning away. After many, many, long years of this cursed life, he would finally be free. He had lived too long, seen too much, done too much for him to find any joy in living. He provided the vampiress, Seras Victoria, the means to kill him. A single, silver tooth that had been forcibly ripped from a Jew's mouth during World War 2. Seras had used the tool against him effectively, just as he had hoped she would. What else would you expect from the only vampire sired by the one and only Dracula, or Alucard as he was called these days. He closed his eyes for his eternal rest . . .

And then he opened them again. He was staring at the shattered moon hanging in the star filled night sky. He could feel cool grass against his bare back and his ears twitch at the light breeze that was blowing and at the sound of crickets and other night creatures . . . Wait . . . Ears?! Hans sat up quickly and felt the fuzzy wolf ears that rested on top of his head, just inches above the normal ears on the side of his head. He frowned in confusion. Soo . . . this was unprecedented. Firstly, he wasn't dead, secondly, he has wolf ears in addition to his normal ears, and thirdly he was . . . nowhere near London or the Millennium blimp he had died in. Let's not even start on the shattered moon.

Hans sighed slightly through his nose and stood. He picked a random direction and began walking. To make matters worse, it began raining. Eventually, he reached the city. It looked different from every other city he'd ever seen, more . . . futuristic, sci-fi some might say. It was in this city that he made another startling discovery, he was the size of a seven year old, and had the appearance of one as well. Hans discovered this as he walked past a shop window and caught his reflection in the glass. He also saw several other people with addition animal parts like he had, sometimes ears, sometimes tails, sometimes horns, but all of them kept their heads down as many normal humans eyed them with disgust and distain.

He kept walking until he felt something he hadn't felt in a long time, tiredness. With no money and nowhere to stay, he slipped into an alleyway and slept there. He continued in the morning, ignoring the pangs of hunger gnawing at his insides. He'd eat later, once he found food. This came as another surprise to him. He actually craved food, not human flesh, once he had a chance to do so without causing a scene, he would test his ability to transform.

After a bit of digging, he discovered that the city, and country, he was in, was called Vale, which was part of a world called Remnant. He soon learned about the monsters of this world, the Grimm. They sounded a bit cliché to him, but it did allow him to develop a few theories. He was either dreaming, this was what hell was like, or he was in another dimension. For him, any one of these would be equally plausible and he didn't really have a preference for any single one. He simply didn't care that much. Hans slept in an alley for the second night, though he did manage to find some water to drink, which was good as dying of dehydration would be a pathetic way to go.

On the third morning, he cut his hand on a piece of glass in the alleyway. He watched blankly as it healed seamlessly, however, it seemed different than when he normally healed from wounds that weren't inflicted by silver, it . . . felt different. Setting yet another mystery aside to solve later, Hans decided to leave the city, he'd find food in the forest. He didn't succeed in finding any food that day, so he slept outside for the third time.

After waking up on the fourth day, he began his hunting efforts anew. Instead of finding prey, he found a house with man and two younger girls outside. The older of the girls had wild, long, golden hair was sparring with the man, whose blond hair was pale in comparison to the girl he was sparring with and his jaw was covered with a light scruff. The other girl was a couple years younger than the one with the wild blonde hair, but hers was black red tinting the ends and the edge of her bangs. She was cheering on the blonde girl, who was her sister if Hans was hearing the girl correctly.

The dark haired girl seemed to notice someone was watching her, which impressed Hans slightly, those so young rarely have such good instincts. She turned and saw him almost immediately, he hadn't been trying to hide and his white hair made him stand out from his surrounds. The girl stood and began walking towards him. Hans remained still. The girl and the man that had been sparring noticed the girl heading towards Hans and stopped to run after her.

"Ruby!" the man called after.

The dark haired girl, Ruby, stopped in front of him and grinned at him. "Hi there! Who are you?" the eight year old him.

Hans didn't answer her as her ten year old sister and what must have been their father came to a stop behind her. Their father didn't look at Hans with distain or disgust as some of the humans in the city had, instead there was only concern and confusion on his face. Ruby started waving her hand in front of Hans' face to get his attention, as if he hadn't noticed her or heard what she'd said.

• • •

Taiyang watched the boy in front of him that his daughters were trying to get to speak, though he remained silent, staring at them with eyes that didn't look like they belonged to a seven year old. They were cold and calculating and . . . empty. The faunus boy's ears flicked every now and then due to his daughters chatting.

Taiyang finally spoke up. "Hey . . . where is your family?"

Those eyes turned to him. For a moment, Taiyang thought that he would remain silent as he had been doing with his daughters, but he opened his mouth and uttered a single word. "Dead."

This startled the three. "Oh no, I'm so sorry!" Yang said, both girls horrified by this news.

With this information, the boy's eyes made a little bit more sense. It's quite possible that his parents could have been the victims of anti-faunus crime, and his cold attitude towards them may mean he thinks ill of humans, though he didn't seem to hate them. Taiyang wanted to show him that not all humans were like that, and the boy looked like he hadn't showered or eaten in a few days, and was dressed only in a pair of pants.

"Why don't you . . . stay with us a few days? There's food, water, and a place to sleep." he offered.

At the mention of food, the boy's stomach gave a loud rumble. He looked annoyed, as if he was displeased with his body giving away it's needs. But, he gave Taiyang a single nod that showed he accepted the offer. Eager for the change in subject, the girls dragged him towards the house to show him around. Taiyang followed the girls.

"By the way, since you're going be staying a little bit, we're going to need something to call you, what's your name?" he asked the boy.

He turned to look at him and there was a moment of silence before he answered, "Hans."


	2. Chapter One: Settling In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Hellsing or RWBY.

It has been a few days since Hans was taken in by Taiyang and his daughters. Though he had been offered a room, Hans had opted to stay outside, not wanting to be in the house with the two girls. The reason for that being, they were far too bubbly and . . . frankly naïve for him to even want to put up with their incessant questions and constant attempts to make him smile or laugh. Hans had thought that immortality was a torturous existence, but he was finding Yang and Taiyang's puns to be a close second.

There was one plus to his new living situation, the father of the two girls was apparently a warrior known as a Hunter, an individual who hunted Grimm for a living. Equally apparent, Ruby and Yang were dead set on joining an academy that trained Hunters and Huntresses when they were older, which was why Taiyang was often found training with the girls in the yard when Hans found them. Speaking of which, having someone to train against was the aforementioned plus as it gave him an opportunity to test his strength in this strange dimension. Having had some time to think about it, the different dimension theory is what Hans decided to settle on for now, as strange as the idea was. Then again, there was nothing that wasn't strange about this whole situation.

Taiyang was trying to figure out what to do with Hans. He felt like he should take him to an orphanage or something, but the girls liked him, and Hans seemed content to stay where he was, even refusing to sleep inside the house, despite their many attempts to convince him otherwise. Taiyang knew that he should take Hans to an orphanage, but he didn't know if it was actually the right thing to do or not. He was well aware of the existing anti-faunus sentiment, and he was worried about how Hans might be treated in a government-run child-care institution, considering he suspected Hans parents had been killed by faunus haters. Besides that, he got the feeling that Hans would refuse to go. There was something about his eyes that made him seem much, much older than he was. Something about the way he looked at you made him seem . . . ancient even.

About a week after Hans found the family, Taiyang took him and the girls to the city so he could purchase the wolf faunus some proper clothes, as he was garbed only in pants. While they were in the store, Hans drew many strange and sometimes disdainful looks, though it was unclear if it was because he was a faunus, or because he was a faunus with a human family. Thankfully Hans seemed unaffected by the behavior. He selected black combat boots, a couple pairs of dark green cargo pants, a couple pairs of white tank-tops, and a dark green ankle-length trench coat with a high collar that covered everything up to his eyes when he turned it up. While there, Taiyang purchased some changes of socks and undergarments, as well as a waterproof bag to keep the spare clothes in and a sleeping bag, since he refused to sleep inside the house.

Another week went by of Hans refusing to come into the house and the boy had found some way to wash his own clothes. One night while everyone was sleeping, it began to thunderstorm. The rolling thunder woke the youngest member of the household and she was suddenly struck with concern for the wolf faunus that was sleeping outside. Sneaking out of bed, Ruby grabbed her and her sister's raincoat. She was still pulling on hers as she ran out the door.

"Hans! Hans!" Ruby called out, heading for the treeline where Hans disappeared every night.

Hans was sitting on the lower branches of a tree, the bag with his clothing and his sleeping bag were hanging up nearby. The ground would be become soaked and the sleeping bag wouldn't do him much good. As such, he was trying to use the dense canopy above him to block out most of the rain while also trying to get some sleep and keep his belongings mostly dry as well.

Now, this was not the first time he had slept out in the rain, but it was the first in a long time that he had to worry about getting sick. This body seemed to be more human-like than it was when he "died". He was physically weaker and was unable to transform into his wolf form, which he took to mean he was no longer a werewolf. During training sessions however, he had noticed a bright silvery-grey effect when a hit landed. When he asked Taiyang about it, the man had told him that it was his Aura. Taiyang had been surprised when Hans had spoken to him, but he was also surprised by how strong Hans' Aura was, especially for his age. The man had gone on to explain that all living things that have a soul have an Aura, the strength of which could be trained like any other part of the body, and that Aura acted as a shield from damage until it was depleted. Taiyang's comment about Hans aura had sparked competitiveness in Yang, while Ruby seemed happy for him.

Speaking of whom, he could hear her calling his name over the pouring rain and booming thunder. What was she doing out here? Shouldn't kids her age be in bed sleeping at this hour? And why was she out in the rain looking for him?

Ruby continued to call out for him as she trudged through the forest and the rain. Since Hans was in a tree, and he chose not to respond to her calls, Ruby did not notice as she walked right under him. Hans might have let Ruby wander the through the forest until she gave up and went home or got hopelessly lost within the forest, but he heard a tree creak particularly loudly . . . then the tell-tale sound of wood beginning to snap. Ruby heard the sound as well and whirled around in alarm as a nearby tree began falling towards her. Hans reacted in an instant. He dropped out of the tree and darted forward at Ruby, grabbing her and carrying her out of the path of the falling tree. Hans stopped as the tree crashed to the ground behind them.

"Hans?" Ruby asked in confusion, trembling slightly from the experience.

Hans made eye contact with her, his expression unchanged. "You hurt?" he asked as the downpour began soaking his hair and clothing.

"Huh? Yeah . . . Yeah, I'm fine . . . I think. But what about you? Are you okay?" she asked.

Wondering how the girl could still be worried about someone other than herself after something like that, he nodded as he set her down. Looking her over, Hans noticed the garish yellow raincoat hanging over her arm. He knew the girls well enough to figure that it must belong to Yang.

Ruby's look of relief soon turned into a pout. "Where were you?! I was looking all over for you! You're out here in the rain and I was worried you were going to get sick . . ."

Hans stared at her, still ever silent. Ruby shifted her feet, finding the silence she remembered why she came out here in the first place and hurriedly presented him the yellow raincoat, which he only glanced at. She frowned when he wouldn't take the protection.

"I brought you a raincoat so you wouldn't get wet," she said, confused as to why he wasn't taking the raincoat.

He shrugged slightly in a way that seemed to say, "Already wet."

Ruby's frown deepened. "Then at least come inside the house!" Hans shook his head. "Why not!? Do you . . . do you hate us?" Another head shake. "Then why?"

Several moments of silence passed as Ruby waited impatiently for the stoic faunus boy's answer. Hans didn't really know why he was so adamant about remaining outside, besides the Xiao Long family's multiple attempts to persuade him otherwise. It wasn't that he disliked hanging around people, he simply preferred being alone, but if that was the case, why did he hang around the family when they were all so friendly and bubbly? Was it just because he could and he was being stubborn about it? Eventually, he answered with just a shrug, causing Ruby to groan in frustration.

Seeing that asking wasn't working, she decided to switch tactics. Ruby put her foot down with Hans, literally stomping her foot as she stood straight in an effort to look commanding. "Fine then, you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but you're going to come inside where it's warm and dry. And I won't accept no for an answer!" she declared.

Hans almost wanted to laugh. Almost. Here was this small child telling, no, attempting to command him to come inside her home. He had been a centuries-old werewolf that had grown so weary of his eternal life that he actively sought the oblivion of death. And a child was trying to command him. It almost made him smile at the irony. Ruby was still waiting for his response, arms crossed and pretending like there was anything she'd be able to do if Hans refused as he had before.

" . . . Okay." Hans conceded.

That caught Ruby off guard. "Wait . . . really?!" she exclaimed in surprise, having expected Hans to refuse.

Hans only gave a single nod in confirmation. Ruby squealed in excitement and grabbed Hans by the arm, dragging him towards her house. He made small sounds of protest as he was pulled along by the energetic girl. A few minutes later, Hans took his first step inside the Xiao Long household. The house did admittedly have a very cozy feel to it, but that wasn't what Hans looked for in a shelter. Luckily, it seemed sturdy and well-built, and there were no holes in the ceiling. It was dry, it was warm, and it was stable so that was good enough for him.

Ruby took off her raincoat and hung up Yang's, which she had forgotten to give to Hans. She told him to wait before going to get him a towel to dry off with. He stood there obediently until she came back and offered him the towel. He took it and began to slowly dry his hair. It was strange for him to have to worry about something so insignificant as being sick . . . but at the same time he kinda . . . liked having to worry about his health. Perhaps this meant that he could just live out a normal life in this world. These were his thoughts as he slowly towel-dried his hair.

She looked around before running off and came back with an armful of blankets, which in her case was a single blanket. "We don't really have an extra room you can use, but you can sleep on the couch for tonight!" she told him with a bright smile as she unloaded the blanket onto him.

Hans nodded his thanks. Setting the blanket down on the couch, he removed his trenchcoat and hung it up. He sat down on the couch and removed his boots and his socks, which were soaked from trudging through the rain after the energetic girl. Ruby watched him with some awkwardness before yawning.

"Well, I'm beat, Goodnight Hans!" she said with a smile.

He eyed her from under the towel. " . . . . Night . . . . " he finally responded.

Her smile widened at that and she went into her bedroom. With a quiet sight, Hans finished drying his hair and went into the room where Ruby had gotten the towel from. As he expected, it was the bathroom. He hung the towel on the edge of the laundry hamper before going back out into the living room. Using his arm as a pillow, Hans laid down on the couch, covering himself with the blanket. Laying there in the dark, he stared up at the ceiling, starting to feel curious about what this world would bring him.


	3. Chapter Two: Fever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or Hellsing.

uddenly, his body convulsed as his lungs forcefully and involuntarily expelled the air they contained. He sat there, stunned, and his eyes widened. Had he just . . . sneezed? Taiyang, poked his head out from the kitchen, eyebrows slightly furrowed in concern. They furrowed even further when he noticed that Hans' face was flushed.

"You okay, Hans?" he asked.

"I'm fi-." Hans started to say before he was struck by another sneeze.

The father of two frowned and went over to Hans. He put his hand on the faunus boy's forehead, checking his temperature. Hans recoiled at the touch and smacked his hand away, glaring at him. Regardless, the contact had been long enough that Taiyang had gotten the information he needed.

"You have a fever!" he exclaimed, worried.

"Impossible." Hans stated. The last time he'd been sick was before he became a werewolf.

Taiyang shook his head at the boy. "Stay here. I'll bring you some medicine," he said before disappearing back into the kitchen.

Shortly after he left, Ruby and Yang both came out of their rooms.

"Hans!" Yang exclaimed happily, glomping the poor boy. "You finally came inside!"

Hans squirmed and struggled to get out of the wild girl's hold. Why the hell was this girl so strong?! Or was it that his current body was really this weak? A sense of dread filled him at the sound of Ruby's giggle. It wasn't long before his dread was proven warranted as the young silver-eyed girl joined her older sister in the glomping.

He was thankful when Taiyang came to his rescue as he walked in with medicine in hand. "Girls!" he exclaimed. "Let go of Hans! He's sick and you're going to make him worse! And I don't want either of you getting sick too!"

The two girls looked at their father in surprise, slowly releasing Hans from their hold, much to his relief.

"What do mean? Is Hans really sick?" Ruby asked in concern.

Taiyang sighed heavily and nodded in affirmation. "He has a fever."

As if on cue, Hans sneezed again.

Ruby gasped and looked at the wolf faunus boy in concern. "Oh no! It must be because he was out in the rain last night!"

"That's right, there was a storm last night, wasn't there?" said Taiyang as he handed Hans a cap of children's cold syrup and some water to wash it down.

He eyed the thick, medicated substance with distaste, grimacing at the smell. He didn't want to take it, even if he reluctantly acknowledged to himself that he probably was indeed sick and that he'd be better off taking it than not. But, he was stubborn and still in a state of denial about his first illness in centuries. A look both from Taiyang and Yang made him think otherwise about refusing it. Reluctantly, he drank the thick, sickly sweet, and slightly bitter syrup in one go, face twisting in displeasure. He was suddenly very glad for the water and quickly drank some to wash the medicine down.

Taiyang took the now empty cap from Hans. "I'll make some porridge for you. Eggs and toast aren't exactly the easiest things to eat when you have a cold," he said before heading back into the kitchen.

"Aw sweet!" said Yang, following her father into the kitchen for breakfast.

Ruby, on the other hand, stayed by Hans. He met her eyes for a moment before jerking his head toward the kitchen, a questioning look on his face. He was asking her why she wasn't following her family into the kitchen to have breakfast.

"I wanted to thank you for saving me last night . . . '' Ruby said.

Hans simply shrugged at her thanks. The action had been more on reflex and impulse than anything else. Despite everything, he wasn't so much of a bastard as to just sit by and watch an innocent child get crushed by a tree in front of him. He had seen more than his fair share of senseless, mindless death and destruction, so without much thought, he had saved Ruby from what would have been a rather pathetic death.

Ruby was still waiting for some form of vocal response from him. Ordinarily, Hans would be more than content to let her wait until she grew tired of waiting and gave up, but . . . there was something about those large, innocent, silver eyes that made him give in.

"It's nothing," he finally responded.

Ruby's expression told him that she certainly didn't think it was nothing. But, none-the-less, she accepted his response. She beamed brightly at him.

"Well, thanks again anyway." She said before running into the kitchen-dining room after her father and sister.

Hans was alone to his own thoughts then. Up until now, Hans had not given any consideration to what he would do as he "grew up" in this world. He had no idea how long he'd be here, how long he'd be alive, and how long Taiyang would tolerate having a child that wasn't his own hanging around. He needed to figure out what he was going to do in the future. He supposed he could just survive on his own in the woods, but that sounded dreadfully dull and . . . a bit lonely if he was being completely honest with himself. Maybe being confined to the body of a child was making his head weird.

His thoughts were drawn to the two girls in the other room. They were so certain that becoming Huntresses was what they wanted and were going to do. Perhaps he could attempt that path as well . . . He was pulled from his thoughts as Taiyang and his daughters came out of the kitchen, each of them had a plate of food in their hands, except Taiyang who was carrying a bowl of porridge in his other hand. They were met by a look of confusion from Hans. His confusion was met with kind smiles.

"We couldn't let you eat alone now could we?" Taiyang asked rhetorically.

Hans could only stare, dumbstruck, as the family moved to sit at the coffee table that was in front of the couch he was currently sitting on. Taiyang sat pretzel-legged on the ground with his daughters after setting the bowl of porridge down in front of Hans. Yang dug into her breakfast with a ravenous hunger while Taiyang ate at a more calm pace. Ruby, instead of eating her own food, scooted closer to Hans and scooped up some of the steaming porridge. She blew on it before bringing it up toward his face.

"Say, Ahh~" she instructed.

Hans blinked at her in stunned silence, leaning slightly away from her.

"Uhh . . . Ruby?" Taiyang began. "What are you doing?"

She frowned cutely and looked at her father. "Isn't this what you always do whenever me or Yang is sick?"

"Well, yes." Taiyang admitted. "But that's different. I'm your dad, Hans . . . well, Hans doesn't know us too well, so it'd be awkward and uncomfortable for him to be fed by you."

"Oh," said Ruby, looking slightly disappointed.

She felt somewhat responsible for Hans' illness and wanted to make up for it somehow. Sheepishly, she offered the spoon for him to take, which did with a small nod of thanks before beginning to eat. Ruby began eating as well. Hans ate at a slow pace, though not because he wasn't hungry or the food was bad, quite the opposite really. It had been such a long time since he had eaten with anyone, not since before he became a werewolf at least. It was an odd feeling, but not a bad one, and it warmed something deep inside his soul.

Over the next few days, the family continued to care for him during his illness, even turning the spare/guest room-turned-storage-room back into a usable bedroom. Without so much as asking his opinion, it was decided that he would stay there. Once Taiyang had confirmed with Hans that he had no family that he could go to, he started to look into how he could become the boy's legal guardian.

That, as it turned out, would have to wait a bit as a couple weeks after Hans had recovered from his fever, the Xiao long-Rose family received a visit from a certain dusty, old Qrow. Upon first laying eyes on the man, Hans was struck by the impression that he looked to be more Ruby's biological father than Taiyang did. What was more surprising was the fact that the man wasn't blood-related to the younger girl at all. Another thing that struck Hans was that, despite the strong smell of alcohol on him, he appeared to be completely coherent. There was an intriguing look in his eyes as their eyes met.

Qrow spent most of the day entertaining his nieces, but after they and Hans, who had simply watched them, had been put to bed, Qrow seized the chance to speak to his brother-in-law in private.

"So, who's the kid?" he asked.

"His name is Hans. He just sort showed up a bit ago, wearing nothing but a pair of pants. He doesn't have any parents or family, and he doesn't have anywhere to go."

"Why not take him to an orphanage or something?" Qrow asked.

Taiyang gave a bit of a shrug. "Well, I was worried about how he might be treated, what with all the anti-faunus sentiment going around. Plus, the girls seem to like him and . . . I don't think he'd agree to go anyway."

Qrow was silent as he processed the information, taking a sip from his flask. After a few minutes, he spoke again. "Have you noticed it then? That look in his eyes?"

Taiyang nodded. "You mean how he seems far older than he appears?"

Qrow nodded in confirmation. "This may sound strange, but I'd like to take him Ozpin."

" . . . You don't think-?"

Qrow nodded. "There's something that's different about that kid, and I'm hoping Ozpin might know what that is."

Taiyang thought about it for a few minutes. Then, after releasing a deep sigh, he nodded again and said, "That'd be a good idea. You'll have to ask Hans first though. I'm not his father and I don't think I could make him do anything even if I tried. It took us this long just to get him inside the house."

"Then when he gets up, I'll ask him," said Qrow.

"You mean when you wake up?" Taiyang prodded jokingly.

Qrow chuckled. "Fair point."

• • •

It was late morning by the time Qrow woke up, and the kids were already out in the yard training with Taiyang. He watched Hans for a bit. The more he saw, the stranger the kid seemed. He moved and battled in a way that suggested decades of experience, experience that belied his young appearance. His eyes were truly disturbing though. They were battle hardened and hauntingly empty as he fought. These things only served to further Qrow's suspicion that there was much more to Hans than what was on the surface. He noted that it was nearly impossible to get a read on the boy's next move and that he seemed more than content to wait until Yang or Ruby created an opening and instantly exploit it.

Taiyang called for a rest when he saw that the kids were getting tired, and it was then that Qrow took the opportunity to pull Hans aside for a little chat.

"Hey, kiddo," he started. Hans met him with a silent stare. "Right . . . not a talker, almost forgot." Qrow took a sip from his flask. "Listen kiddo, here's the deal; Tai and I both think there's a lot more to than meets the eye. There's someone we know who's a bit similar, and I'd like to introduce the two of you . . . what d'you say kiddo?"

Again, he was met with a silent stare. Qrow responded in kind, taking a sip from his flask as he waited for some kind of response from the kid. It took several minutes, but Hans did finally respond.

"Who?" he asked.

Qrow looked at him, considering how best to answer the question. "His name is Ozpin. He's the headmaster of Beacon Academy. Do you know what that is?" he asked as a test.

Hans nodded once. How could he not? Yang and Ruby were dead set on going there, so he knew it was a place that trained Hunters and Huntresses. He figured that it wouldn't hurt to know more about this academy that Ruby and Yang wanted to go to. And, if he really was planning on going through with becoming a Hunter, it would do him good to meet the headmaster of the academy he was most likely going to go to.

"I'll meet him," Hans said, answering Qrow's original question.

"Then it's decided, we'll leave in a few days."


	4. Chapter Three: We're Off to See the Wizard

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Hellsing or RWBY.

As Qrow had promised, they departed a few days later. The journey was mostly quiet apart from Qrow's attempts at small talk, and even that was gone after the first few hours, Qrow having gotten the hint that Hans didn't do small talk. During the trip, Hans wondered what kind of man this Ozpin was. It stood to reason that he was a powerful individual, both on a combatant and influential level, based on the fact he was the headmaster of the only Hunter's Academy in Vale. Unless he'd gotten the position through bribery or blackmail. The only way to find out would be to actually to meet the man.

When they arrived, Hans showed no outward reaction to the sheer size and architecture of the academy, but he was actually rather impressed. He followed Qrow through the courtyard and into the building. They entered an elevator and went up to the highest room in the academy, which was the clock tower that was a prominent feature of the academy's architecture, where they entered the headmaster's office. There was a man looking out the window over the school grounds. As he turned around, Hans saw that he was dressed in a suit of black with a green turtleneck underneath. His hair was silver in color, though his eyebrows were black. He held a cane in his hand and wore small black spectacles low on his nose.

Their eyes met, and instantly the two recognized a kindred spirit in each other, their eyes sharing that same weariness that comes with immortality. "Good afternoon Qrow, this must be the child you told me about."

"Yeah, this is Hans. Hans, this is Ozpin, the Headmaster of Beacon Academy," said Qrow, introducing the two.

"Hans . . . ?" Ozpin questioned, prodding for a surname.

There was a long silence as Ozpin and Hans tried to gage each other until Qrow broke it by saying, "He hasn't mentioned a last name."

"Indeed?" said Ozpin, still looking at Hans. "Do you have a last name?"

There was a long pause before Hans answered, "Gunsche."

Ozpin gave a thoughtful hum. "Tell me, child, how old are you?"

Hans answered with a single word. "Old."

A small smile that was halfway between sad and amused came over Ozpin's expression. "I thought as much. I am old as well. Very . . . very old." The weariness in his voice as he said the last sentence was nearly palpable.

"I'll uh . . . leave you two to chat," said Qrow.

Ozpin gave him a nod of approval and Qrow gave him a nod back before leaving the room. There was something about the atmosphere around Hans and Ozpin that gave Qrow the sense that the two had some things to discuss and he'd just be a third wheel in their conversation. He took a sip from his flask. He supposed he could take a walk around the school and reminisce about his days here as a student or go into the Emerald Forest and kill a few Grimm while he waited for the two ancients to finish conversing.

There was a good ten minutes of silence after Qrow left the room before either of them spoke again, and surprisingly, it was Hans who broke the silence. "Why can't you die?"

Ozpin gave a wry chuckle. "Because I am being punished. A long, long time ago, there was someone that I failed to defeat, and until I do so, it seems that I will not be allowed to perish. It's not entirely accurate to say I can't die, because I can. Or rather . . . my body can. Whenever I am slain, my consciousness moves on to a new body, one that is already inhabited by another soul. For a time, we're forced to share the same body. But eventually our minds merge and we become one consciousness. This is my punishment for not beating that person so long ago."

Hans slowly nodded, taking in the information and processing it. It was a strange source of immortality, but not the strangest one he'd ever heard of. Schrodinger took that record, and would likely keep it for all eternity.

"So, now that you've heard my story, it's only fair that you share yours," Ozpin stated after giving Hans a few minutes to process his story.

There was another ten minutes of silence, but Ozpin was a patient man. His patience was rewarded with the shortest story anyone had ever heard.

"Werewolf. Fought. Died. Woke here. Like this," he stated, gesturing to his ears.

Ozpin's brows shot up. "A werewolf?" he repeated, surprised. Hans nodded. "Interesting . . . " the headmaster mused.

More silence followed as he went into deep contemplation. Hans couldn't help but wonder what Ozpin was thinking about. Could he be trying to figure out if he should kill him or not? It didn't seem so. There was no killing intent coming from the man, and there was nothing about his posture or his eyes that suggested an intent to attack. He got the answer to his wonderings some minutes later.

"You and I . . . I believe we could be of great use to each other. Tell me, have you given any thought as to what you are going to do when you are older . . . well, when your body matures."

Hans nodded slightly. "Hunter."

Ozpin smiled as if he had figured that would be his answer. "That works perfectly. If that's the case, I'd like to make you an offer. I will become your . . . benefactor, so to speak. I'll make it possible for you to join a combat school, whether or not you make it to Beacon is up to your own merit. In exchange . . . I'll need you to keep an eye about for some things, things that will help me find and stop that person I was supposed to stop all those years ago, things that will help me figure out what she's up to. If you agree, you'll be given a gift to aid towards that endeavor, just like Qrow."

When Hans thought about it, it sounded like a good trade. He would likely need documentation to go to combat school, which he would likely need to attend in order to have the proper forms to be accepted into Beacon. All he had to do in return was aid Ozpin in finding the person he needed to defeat. Even so, he was apprehensive to accept. It sounded too easy, too simple.

The headmaster noticed that Hans seemed conflicted, so he decided to add, "Even if you refuse, I'll still get you the proper documentation you need to attend combat school, and it won't affect your selection for entry into Beacon either. But . . . I feel like having someone like you on my side would help me greatly."

That swayed Hans in Ozpin's favor. The man was sincere as far as he could tell, and even if Hans refused, he'd still be willing to aid him in solidifying a place in this strange world. If Ozpin would do that even if he refused, that would mean that Hans would be indebted to him, and Hans didn't really like the sound of being indebted to another person. He was already indebted to Taiyang and his daughters for taking him in and caring for him, even though he hadn't asked for it.

Finally, after a long, long silence spent in deep contemplation, he said three words. "I'll do it."

• • •

Hans was curious as to what the "gift" he would receive was. But he soon found out, as Ozpin informed him he'd give him the ability to shift into the form of an animal. He couldn't be certain what type of animal as it would be something to fit the individual in question, explaining that Qrow could change into a crow, and his sister, Raven, could change into a raven. Hans was apprehensive about receiving a gift that would change him into an animal, he'd been there and done that. But, he'd already agreed to receive the gift and Ozpin assured him that the transformation would be completely at will and would not by any means make him immortal, or make him immune to damage, the only thing it would do is grant him the ability to change him into an animal. Hans somehow knew what his animal would be before he received the gift. And he was correct, as he changed into a large, silver wolf. Large for a young one anyway.

"Huh, it suits him," said Qrow, taking a sip from his flask. He had gotten bored and decided he'd watch the exchange. "You going to be okay there, Oz?"

Hans turned to look at Ozpin and understood Qrow's concern. The man looked extremely drained.

"I'll be fine after I get some rest," he assured.

Qrow shrugged, though judging by the furrow of his brows, he wasn't convinced. "If you say so . . ." he said, taking another sip.

Ozpin looked to Hans. "At least, if what you told me is true, it's a form you're familiar with," he stated as Hans changed back into his huma-faunus form.

It was clear from his expression that this was a fact he was not happy about, and Ozpin grimaced, giving Hans and apologetic look. Ozpin looked to Qrow. "You said he's staying with Taiyang and his girls?" Qrow nodded. "For now, it'd be best to take him back there. I'll be sending a parcel there soon. After you drop him off, there's something I need you to do."

Qrow nodded again, took another sip from his flask, and said, "Got it."

After Ozpin had a quiet discussion with Qrow, he bid them goodbye and went to rest for a bit. Qrow put a hand on Hans' shoulder and led him out of the academy. The trip back was spent in total silence, and once they had arrived back, Yang and Ruby bombarded Hans with questions about where he went and what he did. Hans didn't respond to them of course, merely shrugging off their questions while Qrow informed Taiyang that Ozpin would be sending a package to their house, briefly explaining what happened without going into too much detail. They all had lunch together before Qrow went on his way to do whatever it was that Ozpin had asked him to do.

A couple weeks later, just as promised, a parcel arrived at the house addressed to Hans. In the parcel were the necessary documents to prove his identity, including parents, Ozpin having somehow found a recently deceased faunus couple with the last name Gunsche. There was also a Scroll and a letter from Ozpin within the parcel. The letter told him that the Scroll was for Hans' personal use, and served as a means for the two to contact each other.

If Hans encountered any issues, needed something explained, or came across something strange in relation to Grimm, he was to contact Ozpin. The letter also told him the necessary documentation was in the systems it needed to be in but to keep the paper documents in a safe place. It seems that Hans had been correct in assuming Beacon's Headmaster was a powerful man as Ozpin would have had to pull a lot of strings to make this possible, and as such must be a very influential man indeed. He felt that he had made a good choice in accepting Ozpin as his benefactor.

For the following years, Hans lived with Taiyang and his daughters, going to school and combat school with the girls, training and sparring with them at home, fruitlessly training Ruby in hand-to-hand combat with Yang, and practicing with the weapons the family had gotten for him, per his inquiry. Two semi-automatic sidearms similar to his old Mauser C96s, complete with the long, over 20 inch barrels, capable of firing both regular and elemental dust rounds. The barrels folded up so they didn't get in the way of anything. In addition, he carried a bowie knife, also capable of using elemental dust at Ruby and Yang's insistence. If that failed, he always had his fists and his feet.

He had unlocked his semblance shortly after starting to attend combat school. It peeved him a little but everyone thought it was amazing and he couldn't deny that it was definitely a useful one. The years continued to pass as he slowly but surely found himself growing more and more attached and fond of the Xiao Long-Rose family.

Before he knew it, Yang was seventeen and Ruby was fifteen, both of them had been accepted into Beacon, Ruby having been directly accepted by Ozpin himself, despite being two years too young. The birth date on Hans' birth certificate gave him the same age as Ruby. Slightly annoyed that he was the only one not going to Beacon, having to wait another two years, he contacted Ozpin who agreed to let him, at the very least, keep an eye on Ruby and Yang as they went through the initiation that tested their combat ability to ensure they were ready to receive training as Hunters and Huntresses. And it was a very good thing he had.


	5. Chapter Four: Welcome to Beacon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or Hellsing.

Hans watched the students that were lined up on the platforms on Beacon Cliff. From where he was standing, he could clearly see most of the students and pick up bits and pieces of Ozpin's speech to them, but far enough away that no one except for Glynda Goodwitch and Ozpin knew he was there. He caught Ozpin say something about a landing strategy before the first students were launched through the air and over the cliff edge.

None of the students seemed nervous at all about being launched through the air, some of them even looking excited about, except for one. It was a blonde boy. Hans wondered how someone who looked so weak and lacked confidence made it into Beacon. But, he was launched as well, screaming as he flew through the air. Once all the students had been launched, he made his way over to Ozpin and Glynda.

They watched him approach, Glynda with a small scowl, and Ozpin with a small smile, glad to see that Hans' style had not changed much over the years. He was wearing a long, forest green trench coat that went to his ankles and had a collar so high that it covered his mouth, loose-fitting pants of the same color were tucked into black combat boots. At about where his pants would have ended was a belt worn over the trench coat, from which hung his sidearms, the overly long barrels currently folded. White gloves adorned his hands and the hilt of a knife could be seen sticking out of the inside of his boot.

"Do you always launch new students over cliffs?" Hans questioned, face as impassive as ever.

"Usually," Ozpin said with an amused smile. "Hunters and Huntresses are often dropped off in Grimm infested or heavily forested locations where landing would be difficult or even hazardous. So they must be able to land safely from great heights."

Hans grunted at his response, accepting it.

" . . . How would you like to join them?" Ozpin suddenly asked. Hans cocked his head curiously at him.

"You can't seriously be considering allowing him to join the initiation!" Glynda said sternly.

"Why not? He's the same age as Miss Rose and has more experience than her. It may be a bit last minute, but I don't see a reason why he can't at least try." Ozpin reasoned.

"Miss Rose was an exception because she showed prowess. We have seen nothing of Mr. Gunsche's fighting ability," Glynda said, pushing up her glasses while glaring at Ozpin for his lack of proper protocol.

"I'm sure he can handle anything the forest throws at him. What do you think, Mr. Gunsche? Think you handle a few Grimm?" the headmaster asked, turning to the faunus in question. Hans gave him a confident nod, causing Ozpin's smile to widen. "Then what are you waiting for?" he asked, gesturing to the platforms.

Hans considered Ozpin for a moment before stepping onto one of the platforms, bracing himself. Ozpin gave him a smile that said, "Good luck" before he was launched into the air, flying over the forest. His expression remained impassive, taking out his pistols and the air whipped past him. As his body began to lose momentum, he pointed the barrels of his guns downward at an angle, selecting the rounds containing green dust, and fired as he was just above the tree canopy. The guns released a blast of air, stopping his forward and downward momentum and pushing him backward before he began falling straight down.

He broke through the upper branches of the canopy, snapping the smaller branches on his way down. Hans reached out and grabbed the first somewhat thick branch he saw. It broke from his weight of course but he'd expected as much and repeated the action, continuously slowing his fall until he finally grabbed onto a branch that was able to take his weight. Jumping from branch to branch, he made it safely to the ground. Taking a moment, Hans took in his surrounding and got his bearing before beginning to walk in whatever direction he seemed suitable.

• • •

"Blake, did you hear that? What should we do?" Yang asked her partner in response to the sound of some "girl" screaming in terror, turning to only to see the black haired girl pointing upwards.

Yang looked up just in time to see her sister, Ruby, falling from the sky, shouting, "HEADS UP!" as she fell, only for a blonde boy in armor to slam into her in mid-air, sending them both flying into the tree on the other side of the ruins.

"Did your sister just fall from the sky?" asked Blake.

Yang was just as confused as Blake. "I-," she began.

She was interrupted as with the sound of roaring and crashing, and Ursa smashed through the trees before collapsing, having been ridden by an energetic and pink-haired girl by the name of Nora, and a boy named Ren who seemed less than enthusiastic about having ridden an Ursa. Nora, momentarily saddened by the Ursa's death, immediately recovered as she rushed over to the relics, singing as she picked up a golden queen chess piece.

"Did that girl just ride in on an Ursa?" Blake questioned.

"I-" Yang began again, just as perplexed.

She was interrupted once again as with a horrible screaming sound, a Deathstalker burst through another section of trees, chasing after the red-haired girl named Pyrrha. Her sister jumped out of the tree she landed in, landing right next to Blake and Yang.

"Ruby?!"

"Yang!" Ruby said happily, going to hug her sister.

"Nora!" the pink-haired girl said, coming between the siblings.

"Did she just run all the way here with a Deathstalker on her tail?" Blake asked, looking at Pyrrha who was still being chased by the giant scorpion looking Grimm.

Yang, who was shaking at this point, had finally had enough. Her eyes turned red as her temper exploded, pretty much literally. "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! COULD EVERYONE JUST CHILL OUT FOR TWO SECONDS BEFORE SOMETHING CRAZY HAPPENS AGAIN?!"

Two seconds of peace was about all she got too before Ruby pointed up the sky where Weiss was hanging onto the claw of the Nevermore that she had previously been on as well.

"How could you leave me?!" Weiss exclaimed.

"I said, "jump"," Ruby said as if it made the situation any better.

Blake, who was watching with her arms crossed, stated, "She's going to fall."

"She'll be fine," Ruby assured.

"She's falling," Ren commented.

It was at this time that Jaune, who had finally managed to get himself disentangled from the tree he had crashed into with Ruby, decided to leap out to catch Weiss bridal style in mid-air. He soon realized his folly as they both plummeted to the ground, landing hard with Weiss sitting on his back.

"My hero," she said sardonically before standing up and brushing herself off.

"My back," Jaune groaned in pain as the Deathstalker was still chasing Pyrrha around in the background before smacking her towards the rest of the group.

"Great, the gang's all here, now we can die together!" Yang said sarcastically.

"Not if I can help it," Ruby said confidently before stupidly going to attack the Deathstalker.

When it was clear that she was way out of her league, Ruby tried to make a run for it, Yang running in after her. The Nevermore that Weiss had fallen from had decided to circle back around and, seeing the red hooded girl on the ground, sent a barrage of its feathers down, one of them piercing and pinning her cloak to the ground and stopping Yang from getting closer with the Deathstalker closing in on Ruby. Menacingly, it's tail raised, preparing to strike down on the immobile girl. Ruby watched in terror as it's stinger rushed toward her, wondering if this was it, if this was how she died.

There was a blur of shining silver as three large, aural wolves attacked the Deathstalker, one leaping and latching onto its tail right below the stinger, the other two going for its legs. A male form clad in a familiar forest green trench coat moved in front of her. Her eyes trailed up the form, past the high collar up to the familiar red eyes, the head of white hair, and the prominent wolf ears atop his head. His expression was impassive as he kicked the feather, shattering it at the point of impact as the three wolves continued distracting the Deathstalker. With the feather broken and no longer pinning Ruby's cape to the ground, Hans pulled it out of her cape.

"Hans!?" Ruby and Yang exclaimed as he picked Ruby up, throwing her over his shoulder without a word, and ran towards the others.

Yang quickly ran after them, past the stunned Weiss who had been prepared to freeze the Deathstalker. "Hans?! What are you doing here?!" Yang asked.

"No talk. Run." Hans said simply.

"Yeah, okay! That sounds like a plan!" Yang yelled.

The others seemed to agree, though they were surprised by Han's appearance, running after him after Weiss and Jaune grabbed a relic for their team. The aural wolves disappeared and the Deathstalker and the Nevermore followed them as they ran back to Beacon Cliff. Hans set Ruby down on her feet as they went, letting her run on her own. Eventually, as the end was in sight, they found themselves needing to fight the two oversized Grimm. With Nora hammering the Deathstalker's own stinger into its back, and Ruby running up a cliff with the help of Weiss' glyphs, the Nevermore's neck hooked in her scythe, beheading it as she reached the top with a final shot from Crescent Rose.

Both Jaune and Rose had shown good leadership in the heat of battle and the groups had shown exemplary teamwork, which was surprising to Hans as the teams had been selected through such a random process as, "the first person you make eye contact with". Everyone who had successfully made it through the initiation gathered in the amphitheater where Ozpin would announce the teams and their leaders. After announcing Team CRDL, led by Cardin Winchester, he moved on to the formation of the second-to-last team.

"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie," he called out as the four walked up onto the stage. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces, but as there was an odd number of students this year, your team shall receive a fifth member . . . Hans Gunsche."

There were some murmurs among the students as Hans made his way up onto the stage and stood next to the four individuals. Ren, Pyrrha, and Jaune were just as surprised as everyone one else as they looked at the surprise student. Nora . . . well, Nora was just happy to be there. Ruby and Yang, however, were a bit disappointed that their childhood friend would not be joining their team.

"From this day forward, you five will work together as . . . Team JNPHR. Led by . . . " Ozpin stated as Nora hugged Ren happily. Everyone looked expectantly toward Pyrrha, except for Hans who looked at Jaune. While not having much in the way of physical prowess, he did show great leadership skills. "Jaune Arc!" the headmaster finished.

Jaune seemed shocked that he was made the leader, which made Hans believe that he deserved the position even more. Modesty and humility were important qualities for a leader to have, and it seemed that Jaune was a born leader. Now if something could be done about his shoddy fighting skills and his lack of confidence, he'd go from being a good leader to a fantastic one.

"And finally," said Ozpin, announcing the final team. "Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will together as . . . Team RWBY. Led by . . . Ruby Rose," he announced, surprising Weiss, who had seemingly been expecting to be named the leader while Yang was happy for her sister. "Looks like things are shaping up to be an interesting year."

With the initiation over and the teams formed, they all went to eat and celebrate getting into Beacon before retiring for the night. Upon doing so, Team JNPHR encountered a slight problem. There were five members of their group and only four beds. Hans quickly solved this problem for them, laying on the floor and turning onto his side, arm under his head to rest. Ren and Pyrrha tried offering other solutions so they could all sleep on the beds, but he ignored them.

"Huh, he doesn't talk much does he . . . " said Jaune.

"So it would seem," Ren stated.

They all got into their beds and quickly fell asleep, having had a long day. In the morning they would have to start their classes and unpack their things, except for Hans who had nothing to unpack. Hans listened to the soft breathing and the snores of his teammates as he lay awake. He couldn't help but wonder what the future would bring and how their team would be able to cooperate together considering everyone's personalities and skills were so different.

Pyrrha was a skilled and experienced fighter, Jaune was a good leader but was weak and inexperienced, Nora was strong but lacked finesse and self-control, and Ren was quick, but not very heavy hitting. Then there was Hans himself. He had no experience working with others and was used to fighting on his own. It seemed like they would all get in each other's way but somehow they had worked well together against the Deathstalker. That seemed like it had involved a lot of luck though, so only time would tell if they could actually survive each other.


End file.
